West Virginia ends teacher strike with 5 percent pay hike

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice signed a deal into law Tuesday to end a teacher walkout that has shuttered the state's public schools since Feb. 22.

Under the agreement forged between GOP leaders and unions, West Virginia's state employees — including striking teachers — received a 5 percent raise. West Virginia's teachers are among the nation's lowest paid and haven't had a pay hike since 2014.

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"What a good day," Justice, a Republican, said before signing the deal in an auditorium filled with cheering union members. "It was a rough road, but it worked."

Justice announced the deal had been struck earlier in the day, sending it to the GOP-controlled House and Senate. Both chambers unanimously approved increases spelled out in the agreement, which was praised by union leaders from the American Federation of Teachers-West Virginia and the West Virginia Education Association.

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The celebratory mood — coming on the ninth day of missed school — contrasted with a day of protests and tense discussions in the state Capitol in Charleston a day earlier. The teachers had been joined on the picket lines by education staff such as bus drivers and school cooks.

Justice said he was requesting that the state superintendent give districts "flexibility" to satisfy the calendar day requirements. The striking teachers haven’t lost any pay because superintendents have closed schools each day of the walkout and treated the lost days as they would snow days.

"Our children have suffered enough," Justice said.

We have reached a deal. I stood rock solid on the 5% Teacher pay raise and delivered. Not only this, but my staff and I made additional cuts which will give all State employees 5% as well. All the focus should have always been on fairness and getting the kids back in school.

Dale Lee, president of the West Virginia Education Association, said local county leaders would be meeting with school officials to work out arrangements to get classes resumed. But even before the deal was signed, several school districts had already announced that schools would reopen on Wednesday.

"I expect it to be very soon," Lee said.

In a joint statement, AFT President Randi Weingarten and AFT-West Virginia President Christine Campbell praised the move. Weingarten said the "victory is a testament to the voice and determination, the resilience and compassion, and the collective power and organizing of the educators of this state."

Under a previous agreement negotiated last week between Justice and teachers union leaders, all other state workers would've gotten a 3 percent raise while teachers got a pay hike of 5 percent.

The West Virginia House passed the initial deal, but it was rejected Saturday night by Senate Republicans who instead passed a 4 percent pay raise for the teachers. They said they wanted to be fiscally responsible and take additional steps to give all state employees a 4 percent raise.

Senate Majority Leader Ryan Ferns, a Republican, said even though legislative leaders were encouraged to rush through the process, there were "important reasons" to take their time and make sure the pay raise "was a guarantee" amid changing revenue projections. He said "difficult decisions" were made to make cuts in other areas to make the deal possible.

The average salary for a West Virginia teacher is $45,000. The last statewide teacher strike in West Virginia was in 1990.